Overwatch - Hanzo's Redemption
by GoldenHeart-Stories
Summary: Months after learning of his brother Genji's survival, Hanzo Shimada takes the first steps towards righting his wrongs. Aircraft are disappearing over the skies of Nagano and rumors of a superweapon and its dastardly wielder have surfaced. Forging a new path, Hanzo investigates the perilous mountains to search for answers...both for Japan and himself.


**_The world is changing once again, Hanzo..._**

**_ ...and it's time to pick a side_**

Hanzo Shimada ruminated on those words as icy winds struck his body. Despite the frigidness of it all, no feeling compared to the sheer emptiness still swelling within. The purpose his brother still believed he had was as difficult to seek as it was to fathom Genji's survival. Guilt clashed with an insurmountable resilience to carry on. After all, Hanzo hadn't braved a treacherous rock climb just to hike back down.

Nagano - a winter oasis home to mountainous vistas, skiing locales, and now imminent death. The crashed tail end of a plane Hanzo perched upon was a testament to the latter. He sprung from the tip and landed knee-deep in snow. He practically blended in with his white winter gear. He ran a cautious hand across the aircraft's damaged hull until the gap was large enough to walk through. Hanzo stepped in to take shelter from the elements and found a similar sight. Like previous stories he'd heard, all personnel were missing along with any cargo. Data entries. flight logs, and all personal belongings had been completely stripped. At least, almost all of them.

The edge of a photograph caught Hanzo's eye. He knelt beneath the ravaged pilot's seat and plucked it free. An older couple was seen laughing over a candlelit dinner. The warmth of their interaction compared to such a frozen fate flustered Hanzo. "I hope they made it out," he whispered before folding the photo.

A distant whirring forced Hanzo's head up. His eyes narrowed as he listened intently and approached one of the still intact windows. A dark cylinder loomed over the snowy slopes, and soon two more accompanied it. They hovered in formation, and each activated a series of magnetic prongs and saws. Hanzo had to weigh his actions cautiously. He didn't know whether or not the robots were there for him, nor did he know if destroying them would set off an alarm. As much as his fingers itched for combat, Hanzo opted for stealth. Anything or anyone worth defending in the plane had already been taken. He deduced these bots were part of some cleanup crew.

Sure enough, the wreckage began to rock and rumble as the bots detached its pieces. Hanzo laid prone as the roof above came apart. He slowly crawled for the emergency exit hatch, which was ironically still sealed. Whatever struck the plane must've caught the pilots entirely by surprise. Hanzo winced as loose bolts pattered against his back and head. The rest were sucked up by the bot's intense magnets. As the roof cleared, Hanzo felt a daunting tugging from his back. The metal components from his bow stretched towards their magnetic beckoning. With a tumultuous grunt, Hanzo rose to a crouch and reached for the handle. The magnetic pull intensified with Hanzo's desperation as more of the plane broke down.

"Almost," he growled with his arm outstretched. Hanzo had experienced many pulse-pounding moments in his life, but that didn't make him immune to the pressure of them all. Chilled sweat ran down his neck as he heard bots computing behind him.

The emergency hatch finally popped off...just not by Hanzo's doing. He looked up to see one of the bots hovering before him and collecting the hatch for spare parts. Its lone, turquoise-bulbed eye fixated on Hanzo and the bot readied its saw. So long as people were still using machines, Hanzo would always feel like the Omnic Crisis never ended. Then again, who said he wanted the fight to stop?

Hanzo was quick to draw his bow. With precise aim, he launched a powerful arrow straight towards its eye. Inches before striking, the projectile suddenly changed directions and clanged against another bot's magnet. The mechanical trio ceased scavenging to corner Hanzo on the mountainside. With their magnets and saws at the ready, all Hanzo could utter was, "Alright then."

The snowstorm around them intensified, serving as the perfect cover for his attack. In accordance with this, Hanzo unleashed a flurry of storm arrows. While they all fell victim to magnets, they served as an adequate distraction. Hanzo leapt through the air and lunged atop one of the bots. Firing an arrow into its head wasn't enough to kill it, but a haphazard sawstrike from the other bot would. Hanzo leapt away while the remaining two enemies exchanged puzzled glances. One of them jerked forward as something tinged against it.

Unbeknownst to the hapless bot, Hanzo had tagged its back with a sonic arrow. He activated a sonar tracker on his wrist to keep a fix on its location. The snowstorm strengthened until Hanzo lost his footing. He dropped to his knees and followed the sonar blip beyond the winds. Another gust pushed him off course, and when he checked again the bots were right on top of him. One of them extended a magnet to his bow and Hanzo desperately tried to stand his ground. As he did so, the other bot closed in from behind with its saw ready to cleave. He was pinned once again and every second counted. Hanzo sprung from the ground to succumb to the magnet's pull. He let it claim his bow, just so he could deliver a mighty kick to the robot's eye. Shattered pieces littered the snow as it's bulb flickered uncontrollably. He claimed a shard for himself and used it to randomly sever cables on its arm. While one demagnetized his bow, another sent the bot on a rocketing rampage towards its counterpart. They clanged together and spun into the snow in a pile of sparky refuse.

Hanzo caught his breath and retrieved his bow. He recovered what arrows he could in the storm and assessed the damage. The fight didn't appear over when the final bot slowly stirred. To Hanzo's surprise, the last strike had rendered it useless...almost useless anyway.

A thin antenna stemmed from its battered canister and the tip flashed yellow. "Maintenance mode activated," it said. "Repairs needed. Repairs mode maintenance activated activated needed...rep rep mode maintenance."

Though barely making it, the bot hovered away as if returning somewhere. Hanzo finally had a lead as he launched towards the bot. It was in enough disarray to ignore a stowaway in its scrap carriage. All Hanzo had to do was survive its incessant, malfunctioning blathering. Snow battered his face as he pulled up his mouth guard and goggles. He could feel his ears popping as the altitude increased and suddenly cool skies were replaced with blackened metals.

They had entered the damp, man-made corridors of a hidden installation. Emergency lights illuminated the halls in ominous hues of blood red. Hanzo laid back in the scrapheap and observed the rising steel columns around him. The vast expanse teemed with the sounds of industry as blowtorches flickered in the distance. Human silhouettes danced across the rocky walls as a woman's husky voice ordered them around.

"We have a freighter departing from Hanamura at 0:200!" The woman bellowed. "Big payout so I want us ready to engage. Get these pieces welded into something useful, will you?"

"Yes, Mistress." an underling relented. "What of the pilots from our latest score?"

"Are they not up for ransom like I repeatedly asked? Must I do everything?"

The underling stuttered for a moment. "Th-they are, Mistress. But their contacts are poor. The demands won't be met."

"Cheapskates." The ensuing pause was dreadful. "Well that's what bullets are for. Just keep it clean and dispose of the bodies properly."

"It will be done, Mistress Hotaru."

The robot came to a stop and Hanzo thought back to the photo he'd found. It sickened him to imagine the once warm and pleasant couple now thrown in some cell awaiting execution. Fury festered within as he better understood what Genji attempted to convey. The world hadn't changed, for evil was still evil. However, it was the fact that in such an advanced age of connection, there were still people like this Mistress who saw humans as nothing more than profit. If there was ever a time Hanzo thought similar, those days were over. He killed his past along with every assassin his former family had sent to end him. In those deaths came honor. With honor-

"What the hell happened to you?" someone asked and snapped Hanzo back into the moment. He clenched up and listened to a toolbox jingling alongside a pair of lumbering footsteps. A burly mechanic assessed the damage on Hanzo's robotic victim. With a resounding "Huh?" He plucked the sonic arrow from its backside and examined it. His eyes widened and as he fiddled with the arrow's tip. "Not good."

"Not for you, anyway." A shadow loomed over him as Hanzo pounced on the mechanic. The man barely knew what happened as Hanzo jabbed at his face. Disoriented but enraged, the mechanic grabbed a wrench and took a swing. Hanzo ducked and swiftly maneuvered his bow around the foe's neck. He pulled back, furiously choking him out as he had countless enemies. With each tug, Hanzo felt both pain and relief. He saw his younger self being applauded by the rest of the family. He envisioned the sleepless nights on covert operations as a hitman. Hanzo vividly remembered his regretful fight with Genji.

He snapped himself free of the prolonged thoughts...along with the mechanic's neck. The foe went limp in his arms and Hanzo dumped him into the scrap pile. He shed his winter wear, leaving only a set of sleek and inky fibers. Hanzo knew he had to put a stop to the Mistress, but not before saving the prisoners. Utilizing kinetic-assisted ascension gloves, Hanzo scaled the nearby wall to get an overhead view. As far as any crook down there knew, he was just another dancing shadow. His eyes fixated on two men amidst the crowd of bustling scrappers. One of them was no older than Hanzo was, swinging keys in his fingers like it was another day at the murderer's office. He was accompanied by a lanky omnic in a leather jacket. Hanzo assumed that when there were talks of peace between man and machine, they never intended illegal activities. Hanzo's eyes narrowed on the pistol clanging between the omnic's skeletal digits.

Using the shadows to screen his movements, Hanzo tailed the sinister duo to an array of rusted cells. "Same orders, different day." the omnic mumbled in his digitized voice. His words froze Hanzo's blood as he considered every discarded life he'd failed to save. The human kicked at one of the cells and a pair of heads rose up. The prisoners were huddled together for warmth as their cruel captors beckoned them to the door.

"Good news," the man lied. "The Japanese government does give a damn about your miserable lives. They paid us quite handsomely too." He unlocked their gate and swung it open. "Well come on, then. Up now." The older couple remained wary of potential dangers. They glared at their so-called savior and the omnic lurking behind him. The crook feigned sympathy and pouted. "You don't want to keep your families worrying, do you?"

The couple stood up and made their way to the door. Once they were in the clearing, the dastardly human stepped aside so his partner could have a clear shot. Malnourished and exhausted, all the couple could do was clench each other tightly as the omnic took aim at their heads. Sparks flew as an arrow darted straight between his photoreceptors and he completely shut down. Hanzo landed like a specter in the blackness and towered over the fizzing remains of his mechanical kill. The omnic's cohort lunged for his partner's gun, but was no match for the Shimada's speed. Hanzo yanked his arrow free from the omnic's skull with its wiry entrails still dangling. He then drove it into the man's hand before he reached the pistol, ultimately electrocuting him.

Following such a violent display, Hanzo lowered his bow and raised an empty hand. "Greetings," he said. "I mean you no harm."

The husband continued protecting his wife, but she inched forward to speak despite his worries. "Who are you?" she asked.

Hanzo sighed. "I'm still trying to figure that out."

"Enigmatic and unhelpful," the husband grumbled. "If you're here to save us, please tell me you're not alone." Hanzo stiffened until the husband rolled his eyes.

"Forgive Akio," his wife said. "We've been in here so long that it's been easy to lose hope. My name is Taka."

"The honor is mine. You may call me, Hanzo." He reached into his satchel, plucked a nutrition bar, and split it for the two of them.

"Thank you," Taka said. "For the food and for saving us. We were flying over the mountains on a supply run when we were suddenly struck by an unseen projectile."

Akio practically inhaled his food. "You would've thought it was lightning on a clear day," he said. "We didn't stand a chance."

"Now you do," Hanzo insisted.

"Hah!" Akio scoffed and hobbled up to him. "Look, young man. I'm grateful for what you've done. Really I am. But the best thing any of us can do now is escape and never look back."

"I sympathize with the pain you have been through," Hanzo said. "But I cannot leave these criminals here to hurt more innocents who stray in their path. I've seen it before."

"Then you will die," Akio assured.

"You don't know that," Taka scolded.

"I'm trying to return the favor and protect him," Akio retorted. "Whatever weaponry this Mistress Hotaru possesses is beyond comprehension. We've seen but a sliver of its capabilities and were lucky enough to survive. What can your mere bow do?"

Hanzo shut his eyes and listened to the grinding of machinery from the foundries above. "You leave that to me," he said. "Stay out of sight or choose to aid me, but I am putting an end to this."

Akio started hiding away, only to find his spouse following Hanzo. "You cannot be serious," he whispered.

"I've done enough waiting," she answered and recovered the omnic's pistol. "It's time to pick a side."

Hanzo's eyes widened as his brother's words regressed. He gave her a respectful nod as her husband reluctantly joined. He cracked his weary knuckles and picked up a blowtorch to defend himself. Hanzo peered down at his chrome watch. Its arms ticked close to 2 am as Hanzo recalled the Mistress' plan to take down a freighter. The trio neared the scrap foundry, where countless goons gathered around a rising spire. Hanzo launched a sonic arrow into the structure's midsection and peered at his scanner. What looked like an innocent observatory actually served as an electromagnetic powerhouse. Two colossal prongs extended towards the snow-ridden sky as bolts of energy bounced between them.

"What is that devilry?" Akio asked.

"A railgun," Hanzo realized. "See if either of you can get to its base and sabotage it."

"But the guards," Taka worried.

"Leave them to me," Hanzo assured. He lunged to the upper balconies and snuck towards the superweapon. His eyes listed over the amount of enemies while his fingers counted arrows in his quiver. The time to seek whatever idealized honor and valor Hanzo thought existed was upon him.

The railgun's operator tapped away at his scarlet monitor. A sinister grin crept across his face as he eyed a single blip. "Target aligned," he cackled. His fingers nestled the weapon's triggers when an arrow pierced the screen. He screeched as glass flew into his eyes and sparks flared across the seat. The rest of his gang looked to the balcony as Hanzo leapt to engage. With expert accuracy, he launched a flurry of storm arrows in mid-air to scatter the lot. Some became human pin cushions while others returned fire with automatic weapons. Hanzo rolled into the shadows as bullets ricocheted off the railing. He lined up the perfect shot, but a triggered alarm highlighted his location in a crimson hue.

"Up there!" a goon shouted over blaring sirens.

Another henchman took over the gunner's seat by shoving away his ailing cohort. "Damn it!" he cursed. "The monitor's shot to hell and target's long gone. The mistress will have our heads if we don't get this guy's." He overrode the railgun's settings and manned the controls. "Cover me, I'm swinging this thing around!"

Hanzo might've destroyed its targeting system, but the railgun was still fully operational. He ducked for cover and sought an opening to retaliate. His sonic arrow was still active, and revealed two omnics emerging from the opposite side of the spire. Hanzo fired as they stepped out, resulting in an arrow connecting both their heads in a sparky mess.

Hanzo lined up another clean kill and backed away from the gunfire. Little did he realize that he was being pinned and the railgun was drawing ever closer. Its prongs fixated on him as the gunner aimed freely. Lacking a targeting system wouldn't stop him from frying half the foundry in an electromagnetic explosion. These men were dumber than they appeared, but Hanzo was nevertheless out of options. Any attempt to climb away was foiled by a hail of bullets. He braced against cover as the railgun powered up. Its prongs pulsed and ignited, only to suddenly simmer.

"What?" the gunner growled. His fingers fruitlessly battered away at the triggers. A series of snaps and clamors captured his attention as he peered down. Akio and Taka had grabbed an assortment of tools amidst Hanzo's distraction. They'd put them to stellar use by randomly gutting the railgun's core systems, rendering it useless. "You rats!" The gunner hissed. "I'll kill you-"

A bullet struck his chest and he slouched over dead. Taka readied her smoking pistol for its next victim while Akio marveled over her. "Nice shot," he admired.

"I still got it," she said and glanced at his handiwork with a blowtorch. "As do you, Mr. Mechanic."

Akio simpered. "Well, what can I say except-"

"Incoming!" Hanzo warned as a fallen henchman collapsed between the couple.

He had nearly finished dispatching the gang when the doors beside him opened. Smoke billowed from the steel flooring as a pair of booted feet stepped out. They heralded the way for a being coated in layers of versatile, carbon fiber armor. This woman was a traditionalist, for even with advanced tech...her armor was reminiscent of the legendary samurai. Deep, violet hues mixed with mauve accents, leaving a profound wish for royal affection. The woman's studded, gloves hands reached for her helmet and released the face guard. For a moment, Hanzo felt as though he was reliving his fateful encounter in Hanamura. As gears cranked away, he wondered who'd be behind the mask. Not his fallen brother back to haunt him again, but perhaps another specter from his past. The visor switched off to reveal a familiar gaze. This mysterious warrior carried the same, soulless eyes he once possessed. It was a dreadful vision to carry...seeing the world as nothing more than a bounty of power to consume. Hanzo almost pitied her as her identity was revealed.

"Mistress Hotaru," Hanzo presumed. Her prominent scowl was enough of a response. "Your superweapon is vanquished and your rabble is routed. This reign of thievery and havoc over Nagano has ended. Surrender."

Hotaru humored Hanzo with a smirk. "Are you a man of honor?" He didn't answer. "You're still as lost as any of us are."

"You know nothing of me," Hanzo spat.

"And yet you see fit to pass judgment on a stranger. If you were a man of honor, you would understand Bushido...the way of the warrior. We may live in an odd, corrupt future, but that code still gives us power."

"Honor and power are not one in the same," Hanzo intoned and jabbed a finger at her. "You twist the code of our ancestors to justify your needs. Bushido entails respect, yet you steal. Bushido dictates compassion, yet you murder the innocent! I am not a good man, but I know evil when I see it."

Hotaru's eyes narrowed on him. "If you are so well-versed in Bushido, you'll also know it defines victory or death." She reengaged her face guard and visor. "Recall my eyes," she taunted. "For they shall be the last you see!"

Hanzo should've known negotiations would fail as soon as Hotaru mentioned Bushido. Especially with how far she'd molded its meaning to suit her own mantra. He prepared an arrow as she sprung into the air. Her body spiraled like an orchid blur in the blackness. The glint of steel twinkled in Hanzo's eyes as twin katanas escaped her sheathes. As much as it troubled his conscience, Hanzo knew this encounter would only end in death. He could only seek to finish it hastily with a well-placed shot. His ensuing volley of storm arrows swarmed Hotaru as she descended. She bisected a pair of the projectiles while others scraped across her armor.

Hanzo lunged away as she landed to put some distance between them, but she caught on. Before he could ready his bow, Hotaru ran across the nearby wall and kicked him in the jaw. Hanzo collapsed as blood spewed from his gashed lip. It seeped into the facility's grates and trickled to the lower levels. His recovery was rushed when he noticed a growing shadow above him. Hanzo rolled as Hotaru's katanas clanged against the grates. Sparks flared as he weaved between her savage strikes. Hotaru screeched wildly, severing wires and segments of railing each time Hanzo dodged.

"You're delaying the inevitable!" she hissed and drove her swords to his neck.

Hanzo ducked beneath the strike and swung his bow like a club. He nestled it over her shoulders and pulled back. While initially hoping for her neck, Hanzo was only able to snag her helmet before being elbowed away. Hotaru's helmet was flung off and rolled into the foundry's shadows. She glared at him with vindictive eyes and brandished a dreadful glower. Her disheveled, jet black hair swayed with her violent momentum. As Hanzo reached for ammunition, it dawned that only two arrows remained. He scoured the floor for others, but could only find the shattered arrowheads. His search was short-lived as Hotaru returned with doubled ferocity.

He braced as she kicked him onto a nearby conveyor belt. Shards of stolen scrap an unmanned tools scattered across the walkways as the battle continued. Conserving his two arrows, Hanzo resorted to flinging his new surplus of machine parts at her. She quickly grew impatient and stretched her arms to the unseen heavens. Hanzo raised a brow as Hotaru's vambraces glowed an ominous scarlet. A pair of elongated chains emerged and magnetized to her katanas, significantly increasing the range of her strikes.

Agility would be Hanzo's kindred ally as Hotaru swung her chained swords to him. They launched, plummeted, pierced, and sliced across the foundry as Hanzo went on the defensive. Mistress Hotaru's forearms rippled with how much she retracted and forced the chained weapons forward. The blades drew so close, that Hanzo had to stand on one leg to evade. Even doing so wasn't enough as Hotaru slid one of her katanas across his hip. The blade's tip tore fabric and painted the wall in fresh blood. Hanzo took aim at her unshielded face and fired proudly. Chains rattled as Hotaru deflected the arrow with both swords.

Desperation and fury took hold of Hanzo. He leapt from the conveyor belt with the mistress in deadly pursuit. With one arrow left, he knew what remained to be done. Victory would cost everything, even a part of himself. It would require a great mastery passed on through the Shimada family. Through his wounds, he gained strength. He endured the suffering of countless, honorable warriors before him. Hanzo clasped his final arrow as if it were his child. He looked to it as an old friend, welcoming him to do battle one last time. Though the roots of his family tree had rotted under his actions, he had to call on the old ways. He had to summon all of his strength to grant him victory as he raised his bow. It was as if his body knew what would unfold as the beast within awakened. His left arm grew warm as the fabric around it sizzled. An ethereal, indigo essence wrapped around his forearm and the clothing tore. As he took aim at Hotaru, he spoke the ancient words unleashing. "Ryuu ga waga teki-"

Everything flashed so quickly as Hotaru brought her blade down mid-sentence. The ethereal presence within Hanzo rose to protect him in a burst of blue blight. Both Hanzo and Hotaru were sent flying back in adjacent directions. The spirit had indeed defended Hanzo, but at a price. He rose from his daze and scrambled to find his bow severed by Hotaru's blade. The blast had destroyed her chain with it, leaving one of her katanas embedded in the foundry's metallic floor.

"No," Hanzo whispered as he held his broken bow. In each hand, he held a fragment of the life he sought to build. That bow was the symbol of what he could have been after all he left. Now it was destroyed by the very weapon he vowed to renounce. He glared at the katana with such insurmountable hate and equated it to Hotaru.

The Mistress stood to meet him with a demonic, toothy grin. "Workers are replaceable," she laughed. "Weapons can be rebuilt and profits regained. But there is nothing that can restore life. You have failed."

Though he stared at her, Hanzo's mind drifted elsewhere. Her taunts were not empty, but instead served as reflections seeking to haunt him. He used to think and speak as she did. The ignorant resemblance was formidably astounding. There was once a dark time in which Hanzo would've believed death was in fact the end. But due to forces beyond even his control, Hanzo had witnessed the return of a man he thought he'd killed. Genji, his own brother...a soul he believed was murdered out of power and obligation. Months ago, Hanzo faced him in combat and in harmony...yet was still too blind to make sense of it all.

_"What have you become?" _Hanzo recalled asking Genji.

_ "I have accepted what I am and I have forgiven you,"_ Genji had responded._ "Now you must forgive yourself."_

The coldness of Hanzo's world returned to him. His fingers unraveled and the pieces of his bow clattered to the floor. He peered down at his bare, frigid palms and glanced towards Hotaru's lost sword. The last time he'd seen his reflection in a blade, it'd been bathed in his brothers blood. He had gazed into the mirrored image of a killer he could no longer recognize. Now all he could see was a bounding soul. When Hanzo saw himself, he witnessed perfect imperfection. He was the villain he believed himself to be, but also the hero his brother willed for him to create. With a solemn breath and steady hand, Hanzo relinquished what was once forsworn. In the name of a justice he still strived to comprehend, Hanzo reached for the sword.

As his fingers nicked its pommel and brushed its hilt, Hanzo felt as though he committed sin. After all, he had only become an archer after swearing off the weapon he'd struck down Genji with. But his bisected bow was a clear reminder of the end of his former ways yet again. Hanzo pursed his lips and firmly grasped the katana with a growl. Assuming the stance of his forefathers, Hanzo prepared himself for battle once more. He stood proudly as he had on that fateful night, this time not as killer...but as a hero.

Hotaru scowled at his recovery and flourished her remaining sword. Her voice cracked as she taunted, "Surely you do not hope to best me by the blade, archer! You dream of victory."

Hanzo's nostrils flared as he recalled the ways of old. The flickering foundry lights made the dragon tattoo on his arm appear to move. "After what you have stirred," Hanzo uttered. "What you have awakened within me...This is no dream." He pointed the katana towards her. "This is your nightmare."

Hotaru grew tired of his insolence. She screamed like a banshee and launched towards Hanzo. Her chained weapon clacked and clanged as it swung through the air. Like a master of a forgotten art, Hanzo performed an evasive front flip and slashed the chain in two. Though flustered, Hotaru recovered her weapon as the two locked blades. Steel scraped as Hotaru's swift strikes endured Hanzo's precise blows. Her eyes widened as he advanced his attack. Hanzo took powerful steps to her, all while batting away at her armor. Hotaru retaliated with a knee to his chest.

Rage-induced adrenaline flowed through Hanzo as he struck the grated floor. He noticed his bow pieces missing for a moment before resuming his attack. Hanzo rolled beneath her furious blows and slid his katana across her thigh. Blood seeped between the armor plates and she hobbled towards the railing. Hanzo stood tall, observing her and bracing for another attack. Sure enough, Hotaru attempted another desperate jab. Hanzo easily weaved away and sliced across her backplate in the process. The carnage forced gruesome memories of his duel with Genji back into his mind. He vividly remembered his brother's unwillingness to yield as the battle raged on. The fatal blow continued to haunt him until Hanzo was forced to back away.

"Enough!" Hanzo demanded. "You have fought honorably. Now lay down your weapon."

Hotaru rested against a nearby cargo crate. She stabilized her trembling hand and pressed a button on her vambrace. Several gears unwound as her armor plating slid off in an array of bloodied pieces. All that remained was a raddled woman in a torn sweater and form-fitting pants. Despite her fatigue, her reservoir of hatred never emptied. She panted profusely and death-gripped her katana. "If..." she began. "If you were...in my...shoes, do you think...you could surrender?" Hanzo's prolonged silence made her snicker. "That's...what I thought." She flipped a final switch on her vambrace and the gates above her opened. A wave of the scavenging, saw-wielding robots from earlier formed up behind Hotaru. She forced herself to stand and raise her sword. "Vic...Victory or death!" She charged towards Hanzo with her robotic squad in tow.

He should've known negotiations were futile, yet he hoped to show what mercy his brother had offered to him. But Hanzo wasn't Genji...even if he tried to be. He lifted his katana as the wound on his hip stretched. With adrenaline wearing off, Hanzo began to experience the full prowess of pain and exhaustion from his venture. His eyes frantically counted the battle machines, all leading up to Hotaru charging him from the center. She was right, for now he wouldn't surrender and felt as cornered as she had. He attempted slow breathes to calm himself, but a profuse clamor caught his attention.

His bow skid across the floor and pressed to his boots. Its once cleaved center had been reunited with scorch markings. Hanzo then noticed Akio and Taka observing from above. The older pilot waved his welding tools and gestured to the bow. His wife leaned from the balcony where she'd thrown his handiwork. "Hanzo!" she called. "Whatever power you have...whatever right you sought to fulfill...now is the time!" She tossed him one of his discarded arrows and he snatched it in midair.

Hanzo's eyes fixated upon his encroaching foes. Dropping the sword with greater meaning, he recovered his newfound bow and took aim. He felt the ancient power flow through him again as he spoke it into being. The ethereal spirit spiraled across his forearm and embraced the arrow. With widened eyes and flared nostrils, Hanzo shouted to his foes. "Ryuuga wagateki wo kurau!"

The arrow launched directly into the horde. To their surprise, it burst into indigo fractals moments before impact. Hotaru's relief was short-lived as a pair of tremendous dragons emerged from beyond the realm of possibility. With eyes aglow and mouths agape, the spiritual beasts consumed all in their path. Hotaru's metallic legions were crushed and vaporized under the divine attack as she stumbled backwards. Her fear transitioned to blind valiance as she raised her sword and sprung towards the dragons. The entities converged on her, muffling her ferocious screams until her silhouette faded into the ether. The dragons dispersed in a whirlwind of blues and dwindled into a series of twinkling fractals. Spare robot bolts pattered to the floor and the Mistress' sword fell beside its twin. Hanzo eyed his split reflection amongst the blades and sighed. Hotaru wanted a warrior's death and he had granted her one.

The snowstorm quelled as Akio, Taka, and Hanzo watched the rising sun. The couple winced, as they had not seen sunlight in far too long. "The authorities should be here momentarily," Hanzo said as he dressed his wound. "Without the Mistress jamming communications, they should home in on the distress beacon I sent out."

"Thank you," Taka said. "For everything."

"We were wrong to-" Akio began until Taka glared at him. "_I_ was wrong to doubt you."

"Doubt is human," Hanzo replied as the sounds of a helicopter echoed in the distance. He examined the welded crack on his bow. "As is imperfection." The chopper hovered over the mountain peaks and closed in on their position. "They will take you home."

"Are you not coming?" Akio asked.

"My home rests elsewhere," Hanzo replied with a smirk. "Hopefully there is purpose there as well."

Taka simpered and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Purpose is wherever you will it to be," she said. "Wherever your wanderings take you, Hanzo...never forget that you are a good man."

They exchanged bows before Hanzo journeyed further up the mountain. He climbed until exhilaration overwhelmed him as he thought on his deeds. Resting atop the icy peak, he watched his friends depart for home and waved. Hanzo stayed seated until the helicopter became a distant spec over the sun-streaked clouds and let peace take hold. Only then did he reach for his communicator and begin to dial. He thought on Taka's words to grant him resilience and keep him from hanging up.

The dial tone ceased and Hanzo froze. "Hanzo?" a voice inquired.

He cleared his sore, raspy throat and smiled. "Greetings...brother."


End file.
